Division of Workers' Compensation continues to help external users prepare for EAMS implementation

The Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) is continuing to work with forms developers and claims administrators to ensure they will be able to file forms and documents in the Electronic Adjudication Management System (EAMS) when it goes live in August. The division will open its forms testing lab in July and will provide a second draft of prototype forms to external users who are working to ensure the new EAMS forms will be compatible with external case management systems as well as DWC’s scanners. Additionally, DWC has posted a forms submission video demonstration to its EAMS Web site. The video demonstration details the way in which forms will be submitted in EAMS and shows how forms will be processed by the new program.

“EAMS is ready,” said DWC Court Administrator Keven Star. “We want to make sure those who need to use the system are ready, too.”

The division is currently training its employees on how to use EAMS and will begin piloting the new system at district offices June 27 in preparation for go-live on Aug. 25. There are several steps external users need to take to ensure they will be ready to file in EAMS as well.

First, external users need to decide what impact the use of new forms, cover sheets and separator sheets that need to be scanned will have on their case processing systems. Next, if programming is needed to fit the DWC’s new EAMS forms into external print and file processes, that programming needs to begin.

“Because the majority of documents will come into us on paper to be scanned into the system, we are asking external users to stop folding them,” said Star. “Something as seemingly small as that may have a big impact on the way external users do business, so we are providing them with as much detail as possible, which allows them to get their systems in line with EAMS.”

The DWC began working with forms developers in April and has provided several prototypes of the new forms that can be used to begin programming changes into auto-populate systems. This week DWC will provide those developers with a new set of forms, which includes the “Application for Adjudication,” the “Declaration of Readiness to Proceed,” the lien form, cover sheet and separator sheet.

“When this second round of forms is completed and tested, they will be posted on the DWC Web site and released for comment as part of the regulatory process,” said Star. “While we’re still in our own development cycle, we’re giving the forms now to external users who’ve expressed a desire to work them into their own systems so they can begin doing so.”

The division posted its notice of rulemaking for EAMS on May 30 and public hearings for the proposed rules, which include the new forms, will be held in July. The forms testing lab was announced June 9, at which time external users were asked to RSVP their interest in using the test lab by June 11. Since the lab will not open until July, users may continue to send requests to test forms to eams@dir.ca.gov. The forms testing lab is vital for external users who intend to program the new forms with auto-populate features. This is because DWC’s new forms are specifically designed to work with optical character recognition (OCR) software in DWC’s scanners and any forms developed by those outside the DWC must do the same.